1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle-mounted device control unit using a manual input device with a force feedback function, and more particularly to an improving means for the force feedback function.
2. Description of the Prior Art
According to the prior art, there are already known manual input devices with a force feedback function whose knob is enabled to cause the operator to sense resistance and provide a thrust according to the quantity and direction of its manipulation to ensure accurate manipulation of the knob as the input means by enabling the operator to well feel its reaction to the manipulation.
FIG. 11 illustrates a known example of manual input device of this kind. This manual input device consists of a rotary knob 101, a detecting device 102 for detecting the quantity and direction of the rotation of the rotary knob 101, an actuator 103 for loading the rotary knob 101 with an external force, a control unit 104 for taking in a detection signal a supplied from the detecting device 102 and generating a control signal c for the actuator 103, a D/A converter 105 for digital-to-analog (D/A) conversion of control signals c supplied from the control unit 104, and a power amplifier 106 for obtaining drive power for the actuator 103 by amplifying the control signal c converted into an analog signal by the D/A converter 105. The control unit 104 consists of a CPU 104a and a memory 104b, and in the memory 104b are stored control signals c matching different detection signals a in a table form. The CPU 104a takes in the detection signal a from the detecting device 102, reads a control signal c matching the detection signal a that has been taken in out of the memory 104b, and supplies it to the D/A converter 105.
As the actuator 103 is thereby driven and enabled to feed back an external force to the rotary knob 101 matching the quantity and direction of its manipulation, this manual input device enables the operator to well feel its reaction to the manipulation and accordingly to manipulate the rotary knob 101 dependably.
Manual input devices of this kind are used as by-wire type gear shift units for vehicles and functional regulation apparatuses for various vehicle-mounted electric appliances including the air conditioner, radio, television, CD player and car navigation system.
When applied as a gear shift device, the force feedback function that the manual input device is provided with is used as a locking means for enabling the driver to sense a click in changing the shift lever from one range to another, and thereby to forbid improper manipulation of the shift lever from one specific range to another, for instance from the P (parking) range to the R (reverse) range or from the D (drive) range to the 2nd (second speed) range. Or when used as a functional regulation apparatus for vehicle-mounted electric appliances, the force feedback function that the manual input device is provided with would be used for facilitating fine tuning of functions by enabling the rotary knob 101 to cause the operator to sense an appropriate degree of resistance or providing an appropriate thrust to the rotary knob 101 thereby to make its manipulation lighter.
While the foregoing description refers to a case in which the manual input device is equipped with a rotary knob 101, a manual input device provided with a joystick type knob swingable in two-dimensional directions in place of the rotary knob 101 and one with a lever type knob swiveling within a fixed plane are also known.
Since any of the known vehicle-mounted device control units feeds back to the user only the external force from the actuator 103 working on the knob 101, the user would find it difficult to sense any external force working on the knob 101 when running on a rugged road for instance, and the feedback function that the vehicle-mounted device control unit is provided with cannot always be fully exerted.
Incidentally, known examples of common such rotary knobs such as a volume control knob for audio equipment are provided with a grooved pulley with teeth coaxially with the volume control knob in which one end of each of elastic pieces is intermittently engaged with a convex part of the grooved pulley so that the convex part of the grooved pulley flip the end of each elastic piece to enable the user to sense the feel and sound of the resultant click. Where different functions of different electrical appliances are to be controlled with a single knob having such a mechanical force feedback means, only one kind each of click feel and click sound can be produced in spite of the variety of electrical appliances and differences in their functions to be controlled, therefore it cannot be applied as the force feedback means for a multifunctional vehicle-mounted device control unit.
An object of the present invention, attempted to solve the problem noted above of the prior art, is to provide a multifunctional vehicle-mounted device control unit capable of allowing the force feedback function of the manual input device even under stringent conditions.
In order to solve the problem noted above, according to the invention, there is provided a vehicle-mounted device control unit having an electrical appliance selection switch for selecting an electrical appliance whose function is to be regulated, a manual input device for regulating various functions of the electrical appliance selected with the switch, a loudspeaker and a controller. Signals from the electrical appliance selection switch and the manual input device are, supplied to the controller, which controls the manual input device and the loudspeaker. The manual input device is provided with knobs to be manipulated by a user, actuators for loading an external force onto the knobs and detecting devices for detecting a manipulated states of the knobs. The controller supplies predetermined signals according to the manipulated states of the knobs to the actuators and loudspeaker.
As the vehicle-mounted device control unit is thus provided with the electrical appliance selection switch, the manual input device, the loudspeaker and the controller, and predetermined signals are supplied from the controller to the actuators for force feedback use and the loudspeaker provided on the manual input device according to the manipulated states of the knobs provided on the manual input device, the user can know the manipulated state of a knob by both the driving force of the actuator onto the knobs and the sound emitted from the loudspeaker, therefore enable the force feedback function of the manual input device to be fully exerted even under very adverse conditions such as when running on a rugged road, and can accomplish various operations on various electrical appliances quickly and accurately.
In order to solve the problem noted above, the vehicle-mounted device control unit may as well have a configuration provided with an electrical appliance selection switch for selecting an electrical appliance whose function is to be regulated, a manual input device for regulating various functions of the electrical appliance selected with the switch, a loudspeaker, a display unit and a controller, into which signals from the electrical appliance selection switch and manual input device are entered, for controlling the electrical appliance, manual input device, loudspeaker and display unit, wherein the manual input device is provided with knobs to be manipulated by a user, actuators for loading an external force onto the knobs and detecting devices for detecting manipulated states of the knobs, and wherein the controller supplies predetermined signals according to the manipulated states of the knobs to the actuators, loudspeaker and display unit.
As the vehicle-mounted device control unit is thus provided with the electrical appliance selection switch, the manual input device, the loudspeaker, the display unit and the controller, and predetermined signals are supplied from the controller to the actuators for force feedback use, the loudspeaker and the display unit provided on the manual input device according to the manipulated states of knobs provided on the manual input device, the user can know the manipulated state of a knob by three means including the driving force of the actuator on to the knobs, the sound emitted from the loudspeaker, and the image displayed on the display unit, therefore enable the force feedback function of the manual input device to be fully exerted even under very adverse conditions such as when running on a rugged road, and can accomplish various operations on various electrical appliances quickly and accurately.
The invention also provides for a configuration in which the controller synchronously supplies mutually associated signals according to the manipulated states of the knobs to the actuators and loudspeaker.
As the controller thus synchronously supplies mutually associated signals according to the manipulated states of the knobs to the actuators and the loudspeaker, no discrepancy is perceived between the contact force feedback sensed by touching the knob and the aural force feedback sensed by hearing the sound from the loudspeaker, thereby allowing the user to feel a satisfactory sense of manipulation.
The invention also provides for a configuration in which the controller synchronously supplies mutually associated signals according to the manipulated states of the knobs to the actuators, loudspeaker and display unit.
As the controller thus synchronously supplies mutually associated signals according to the manipulated states of the knobs to the actuators, the loudspeaker and the display unit, no discrepancy is perceived among the contact force feedback sensed by touching the knob, the aural force feedback sensed by hearing the sound from the loudspeaker, and the visual force feedback sensed by seeing the image displayed on the display unit, thereby allowing the user to feel a satisfactory sense of manipulation.
The invention also provides for a configuration in which the controller is integrated with the manual input device.
As this integrated configuration of the controller and the manual input device requires no alteration in the external unit, the vehicle-mounted device control unit can be readily applied to the external unit.
The invention also provides for a configuration in which a joystick type knob and a rotary knob are provided as the knobs in the first or second means of solving the problem, a first actuator for loading an external force onto the joystick type knob and a second actuator for loading an external force onto the rotary knob are provided as the actuators, and a first detecting device for detecting the manipulated state of the joystick type knob and a second detecting device for detecting the manipulated state of the rotary knob are provided as the detecting devices in the first or second means of solving the problem.
This configuration of providing the manual input device with the joystick type knob, the rotary knob, the first and second actuators for separately loading an external force onto each of these knobs, and the first and second detecting devices for separately detecting the manipulated state of each knob enables the plurality of knobs to be differentiated in use according to the type or function of the electrical appliance to be regulated, making it possible to improve the operating ease of the vehicle-mounted device control unit and make it adaptable to multiple functions. Concentric arrangement of the knobs would result in saving the installation space of each knob and thereby contribute to reducing the size of the vehicle-mounted device control unit. Further, providing each knob with a separate actuator for force feedback use would serve to minimize the required number of actuators to be provided on a vehicle-mounted device control unit. Therefore, it serves to make the configuration of the vehicle-mounted device control unit more concise than where two or more actuators are provided on a joystick type knob, thereby contributing to reducing the size, cost and power consumption of the vehicle-mounted device control unit.
The invention also provides for a configuration in which a loudspeaker provided on vehicle-mounted audio equipment is used as its loudspeaker.
The use of the loudspeaker provided on vehicle-mounted audio equipment as the loudspeaker for force feedback use dispenses with the need to specially provide a separate loudspeaker for force feedback use, and serves to make the configuration of the vehicle-mounted device control unit more concise, thereby contributing to reducing the size, cost and power consumption of vehicle-mounted device control unit.